Pacific Palisades is a one season wonder series that aired on Fox in the Summer of 1997 and was produced by Aaron Spelling, creator of previous Fox hits Beverly Hills, 90210 and Melrose Place.
It surrounds the lives and careers of several couples and neighbors in the upscale Los Angeles suburb of Pacific Palisades and their many interactions with each other, which are often duplicitous.
Among the stars included Greg Evigan, Finola Hughes, Michelle Stafford, Natalia Cigliuti, and Joan Collins. It ended after 13 episodes.
Related Tropes
- Baby Be Mine: A non-violent and sympathetic example. After her tragic miscarriage, Kate, consumed with grief in both losing the child and her husband, abducts a baby boy from the hospital.
- Bratty Teenage Daughter: Rachel, who hates her overly-critical mother and lives with her Cool Big Sis and her brother-in-law. Turns out, sister Joanna is her mother, having been raped as a teenager.
- Child by Rape: Rachel, who turns out to be big sister Joanna's real daughter. Needless to say, it causes a rift in their close relationship.
- Convenient Miscarriage: Kate, having driven off in a fury after confronting Robert and Jessica, is in a car accident and loses her and Robert's unborn son.
- Fish out of Water: Joanna, who is given a culture shock of moving to fast-paced and flashy Los Angeles from Minnesota.
- Happily Married: Joanna and Nick, although Laura often tempts his and tries to seduce him.
- It's All About Me:
- Robert, oh so much. He cheats on his loving wife with Jessica, who initially was reluctant to engage in the affair, but it soon became mutual, and is as selfish and ruthless as a Self-Made Man of vast means would be.
- Cory, who is a money-hungry and arrogant ladies' man who uses people and manipulates whomever he comes into contact with.
- Mistaken for Cheating: Nick, who was set up to look like this by Rachel as a way of acting out. She is soon caught by him and Joanna.
- Nice Girl: Joanna, Kate, and Beth are all sweet (if not a little naive) women in the cutthroat world of L.A.
- Nice Guy: Nick, and of the men on the show, he seems to be the only morally sound and decent one.
- Parental Substitute: Joanna and Nick are this to her kid sister Rachel, who are more understanding than their own mother. We later learn that she's actually her mother and he's essentially her stepfather.
- Really Gets Around: Laura, who attempts to seduce and sleep with whomever she wants so often, be it neighbors, clients, or her bosses, that you wonder if she's a prostitute instead of a real estate agent.
- Remarried to the Mistress: After Kate ends up leaving L.A., Robert proposes marriage to his mistress Jessica, opting to marry once their divorce is final.
- Screw the Rules, I Have Money!: Subverted with Cory. In spite of his flashy lifestyle as a Los Angeles plastic surgeon, he's cash poor and continually broke. Having a gambling problem to boot probably doesn't help matters, either.
